Friday 17 June 2016

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Dr Tom Hardiman, a fellow of Engineers Ireland, served his term of seven years as director general of RTE from 1968 to 1975. He then took up responsibilities in commercial, industrial and scientific life at home and abroad where his experience of complex organisation could be put to good use. He contributed significantly to public sector policy-making in many diverse areas.   He was founding chairman of the National Board for Science and Technology (fore-runner of Forfas and Science Foundation Ireland) from 1978 to 1983. From 1979 to 1982 he was the Irish representative to the European Community Advisory Committee for Research and Development in Brussels. Dr Hardiman has played an active role in the Irish business community.   He was a director of Bank of Ireland through the 80s and he held directorships in industry, commerce, finance and in various start-up companies.  He was president of the Confederation of Irish Industry (now IBEC) in the early 80s and was president of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce in 1988, Dublin's millennial year. He was founding chairman of the Irish Institute of European Affairs at Louvain in Belgium in the mid-80s.   In the course of his executive responsibility in broadcasting he acquired an awareness of Japan through the European Broadcasting Union.   He has maintained and developed this in the cross-cultural context and latterly in institutional and business matters. He was elected a member of the Royal Irish Academy in 1980 and received Honorary Doctorates from NUI in 1990 and from Lynn University, Florida in 1995.   He was named Chancellor of Dublin City University in 1998 and served for three years.  He was trustee of the American College Dublin through the 90s. He was awarded the Foundation Day Medal by UCD in 1999 and is a founding fellow of the Irish Academy of Engineering, a fellow of Engineers of Ireland, a fellow of the Irish Management Institute, and a fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences.   He was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun Gold Star by the Emperor of Japan in 1986 in the context of his contribution to the EU Japan dialogue and he received the Lafcadio Hearn medal in 1995 from the Ireland-Japan Association to mark his contribution to the Ireland-Japan relationship. In his response, Tom Hardiman touched on the role of the RTE authority as custodian of a public trust.  The troubles in Northern Ireland from the late 60s had brought particular difficulties in the early 70s including the dismissal of the RTE Authority by the Government.  He summarised the issues involved at the time. He concluded by welcoming the internationalisation of the Irish economy, the enlargement of the EU and the development of the EU Asia relationship, in particular the projected EU-Japan economic partnership agreement.